Judge Dismisses Battery Charge in "Desperate Housewives" Case

With a battery charge against the show's creator dismissed, NBC's Gordon Tokumatsu reports that actress Nicolette Sheridan still hopes to win a wrongful termination verdict against ABC. (Published Tuesday, March 13, 2012)

Nicollette Sheridan's battery allegation against the creator of the "Desperate Housewives" series was dropped Tuesday, but testimony continued regarding the former star's wrongful-termination allegation against Touchstone Television Productions.

Sheridan alleged that series creator Marc Cherry smacked her in the head during a September 2008 rehearsal. Cherry contended that he only tapped Sheridan on the head to instruct her about a scene.

"I'm thrilled, but I'm going to hold commentary on this until the entire case is resolved," Cherry said during a lunch break Tuesday outside the courthouse. "But I'm going to lunch now, and I'm a very happy man."

The judge's dismissal was part of another day of surprises in the trial, which included testimony Tuesday from a set construction supervisor. Michael Reinhart told the court he received an email nearly two years ago that indicated ABC execs wanted to delete all emails that involved plans for killing off Sheridan's character.

Sheridan's character, Edie Britt, was killed off during the show's fifth season.

Reinhart testified that he probably received the emails by mistake. He could not remember the exact text of the message, but testified that it included the words "hard drive," "IT" and "delete."

He added that he might have "misunderstood" the content of the email.

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"Reinhart was a very strong witness, and I'm really pleased that he was willing to come forward," said Sheridan attorney Mark Baute. "It's very rare for someone to come forward and say, 'I'm having a crisis of conscience.'"

The email was sent to Reinhart's work email address after the lawsuit was filed, Baute said.

As for the dismissal of the battery allegation, Baute said it was "irrelevant" and "not what the case is about."

The trial is winding down, and closing arguments were expected to begin Tuesday. Reinhart's testimony might delay the start of closing arguments.